Yesterday, we were treated to another preliminary injunction on a product due to patent trolling. Over the past few years, some companies have resorted to patent trolling instead of competing on merit, using frivolous and obvious software and design patents to block competitors - even though this obviously shouldn't be legal. The fact that this is, in fact, legal, is baffling, and up until a few months ago, a regular topic here on OSNews. At some point - I stopped reporting on the matter. The reason for this is simple: I realised that intellectual property law exists outside of regular democratic processes and is, in fact, wholly and utterly totalitarian. What's the point in reporting on something we can't change via legal means?

In spite of the overly bleak tone of the article and the spot on analysis of the current IP quagmire we currently find ourselves in, I have to disagree with the conclusion that nothing can be done, so it's not even worth reporting about it.

Democracy is all fine and dandy, but when it endangers the corporate bottom line, they will find a way to circumvent it.

It's true that the democratic process has failed when it comes to reforming IP law, and we now have this rhizome growing separate from it, but as they circumvent democracy, so can we, and it's pretty simple to do as the parent has stated. Go for their wallet, simply don't buy their products, hurt their bottom line.

You'll always be playing a rigged game, true, but think of the situation where dictatorships are overthrown. There is no democratic process to rely on, and the system is set up to perpetuate the status quo, and still people, given enough numbers and organization, find a way to subvert it.

As an example, read this article if you think it can't be done. The problem of modern dictatorships and totalitarian regimes is essentially the same as current IP laws, as Thom has pointed out.

Yes, the irony that he's using the hardware of a known patent troll is not lost on me.

And before anyone points out that we need our Microsofts and Apples and other such companies in order to make a living, I can only point out two things: the first is that change is never easy and you have to sacrifice short term comfort in order to attain long term freedom. If you can't handle this fact, then you don't get to complain. The second is that, personally, I haven't purchased any product of the two companies I mentioned previously in over a decade, and I work for one of the world's leading IT companies and have what could be considered a career. So have many others I know, which shows it can be done.

Bottom line: every time you make a payment for whatever reason, just stop for a second and think about where that money is going and who it is going to empower. If you don't like it, consider alternatives. It's not going to solve the problem, but it's a start. The next step is organization, which as the recent SOPA backlash has shown *can* be done, all we need is the will to make it happen. But that won't take place unless we can stop doing something as simple as giving these companies money which they in turn use to tighten the control they have over our lives even further.